San Diego Sector Border Patrol agents arrested a U.S. teen after he allegedly smuggled 50 packages of methamphetamine across the border into California on Sunday, November 17.
A Border Patrol Agent in southern California observed a person walking with two duffel bags along the secondary border wall. The young man appeared to be attempting to duck in and out of cover in an apparent attempt to avoid detection, according to San Diego Sector officials.
The agent notified colleagues in the area to close in on the subject. One of the other agents found him hiding in the brush near the international border, officials stated.
“I am extremely proud of the agents’ heightened vigilance and hard work in stopping this unusual smuggling scheme,” San Diego Sector Chief Patrol Agent Douglas Harrison said in a written statement.
The agents identified the subject as a 16-year-old U.S. citizen. After questioning, the agents searched the bags and found a remote control car and 50 packages alleged to have been filled with methamphetamine. It appears he used the remote control car to carry the packages individually across the border from Mexico. The agents placed the young male under arrest and transported him to the station for processing on drug smuggling charges.
Officials stated the methamphetamine weighed approximately 55.84 pounds with an estimated street value of more than $106,000.
Border Patrol officials said the smuggling attempt is similar in nature to a 2017 incident where agents interdicted a drone. Agents assigned to the San Ysidro Border Patrol station observed a drone flying over the border fence during the night of August 8, 2017, Breitbart Texas reported. Agents on ATVs searched for the drone and the pilot and eventually located the man. He had a bag with 13.44 pounds of methamphetamine, officials reported at the time. Agents found the drone nearby.
A federal court in California convicted 25-year-old Jorge Rivera, the drone’s pilot, and sentenced him to a 12-year prison term, officials reported in January 2018.
Bob Price serves as associate editor and senior political news contributor for the Breitbart Border team. He is an original member of the Breitbart Texas team. Follow him on Twitter @BobPriceBBTX and Facebook.